Tackling Poverty and Social Marginalization
Over the last years, Greece has been facing a terrible economic crisis, with significant impact on its citizens in such a degree that social cohesion is at stake in practice. The poverty rates have increased dramatically, threatening social cohesion. Athens, as the capital of the country, condenses in the most dramatic way the grave problems that have emerged. At the same time, new challenges are rising, such as the ongoing refugee crisis, increasing the number of people who are at edge of social exclusion.
The Municipality of Athens, from its first day in the city’s governance, prioritized the support of our fellow citizens that are in dire need of help. The reaction of the Municipality was immediate and decisive. Moving from Charity to Solidarity, the City of Athens has developed an innovative, complex and multifaceted Solidarity Hub with the participation of Civil Society, NGOs, volunteers, private and public institutions – bodies, European partners and European Organizations.
One of the major initiatives of the City of Athens is the current project entitled «Tackling Poverty and Social Marginalization» implemented by the Athens’ Municipality Reception and Solidarity Centre (KYADA), in the Solidarity Hub’s headquarters. The total amount of the project is 2.060.208 € and it is funded by the European Economic Area (EEA), namely Norway funds (95.8%) Iceland (3%) and Liechtenstein (1.2%).
The sole objectives of the project are the reinforcement of the municipality’s social work, the provision of assistance to the citizens who are currently supported by the Municipality of Athens’ Citizens Solidarity Hub, and to deal with the growing phenomenon of homelessness in the city. The project combines the fortification of the municipality’s social structures and the establishment of partnerships with the aim to invite the maximum number of organizations active in social issues of the city to participate in tackling extreme poverty and reinforcing solidarity among citizens.
Briefly, the project consists of two parts:
1.The 1st part involves the issuance and distribution of 46.368 vouchers of 40 € value each, which will be given out in 8 distributions to more than 3600 households (8700+ individuals) – beneficiaries of the Athens’ Municipality Reception and Solidarity Centre (KYADA). With these vouchers, the beneficiaries will be able to buy basic foodstuffs and essential supplies from food retail outlets. The program is implemented by the “Citizens’ Solidarity Hub”, a contemporary structure based on an innovative concept which was designed and implemented by the Municipality of Athens in order to address extreme poverty in the city.
2 The 2nd part of the program aims to address the problems faced by the homeless drug addicts of the city. It involves the reinforcement of the street-work conducted by the Athens’ Municipality Reception and Solidarity Centre (KYADA) scientific personnel with an additional team, the aim of which will be to approach and support drug addicts, through collaboration with organizations specializing in drug addiction, civil society organizations and the informal groups of the ATHENS Municipality’s “Syn-Athina” network.
More specifically, the team will walk the streets of Athens twice a day, every weekday, in order to establish contact with the vulnerable and homeless drug addicts and offer them medical assistance and support. They will also be responsible for liaising with other institutions, organizations, NGOs, as they see appropriate for each individual case (psychological support, medical exams, rehabilitation programs, shelter, etc.).
According to an estimation based on a street-work registry conducted by the Athens’ Municipality Reception and Solidarity Centre (KYADA), there are about 1000 homeless people living on the streets of Athens, 58% of whom are estimated to be drug addicts.
Tackling Poverty and Social Marginalization 